A/N: I forgot to put in the last chapter that it was not the registered author WishYouWereHere15 that left the review I mentioned in Chapter 3 but an anonymous reviewer who left that review using that penname.

Chapter 5

"You okay, Tony?" McGee asked me as I sat and stared at my computer screen.

"Fine, McGoo." I muttered and glanced over to Gibbs desk, where he worked silently. Then I looked at Ziva's desk, it was empty of course, like it had been the past two weeks.

"Okay." McGee said and turned back to his work.

"DiNozzo." I grumbled into my cell phone, not bothering to check the called I.D.

"Hi Tony." Ziva said with a tight voice and my heart sank.

"What's wrong?" I asked quickly and I heard her laugh on the other end of the line.

"Avery should be here soon." She said and obviously tried to hold back from yelling in the phone. "You said you wanted to be here."

"I do, where are you?" I asked as I gathered my coat and started to shut down my computer.

"Bethesda." She said with a grunt.

"I'll be there soon." I said and snapped my phone shut and stood from my desk and looked at Gibbs who gave me a knowing nod while McGee sat there confused as hell.

"Where's he going?" I heard McGee ask as I jumped into the elevator.

"Jeanne, hey listen." I started as I jumped into my car and sped off towards Bethesda, terrified of missing it. I'm almost positive that if I missed Avery's birth any chance I'd have with Ziva would be shot to hell. "I can't make it tonight." I said not paying attention to what she was saying but on the road making sure I didn't get myself killed. "I'm sorry, I'll make it up to you." We said our goodbyes and I threw that cell phone on the passenger seat and drove even faster to the hospital.

"Hi." An older woman behind the lobby desk greeted as I walked into the hospital.

"Hi. I'm looking for Ziva David's room." I said and checked my cell phone for the millionth time to see if she called again.

"3rd floor, room 310." She smiled and pointed in the direction of the elevators.

"Thanks." I said as I opted for the stairs instead of waiting for the ridiculously slow elevators.

"How much longer?" I heard Ziva practically whine to the nurse as she looked over their heart rates.

"I'll get the doctor to come in and talk to you." The nurse said and smiled at Ziva and brushed by me as I pulled a chair up to Ziva's side.

"Hey." I smiled and she glared at me. "What?"

"I hate you, Anthony DiNozzo." She hissed through her clenched jaw. I smiled and held out my hand to her. She looked at me with a brilliant smile and took my hand and squeezed the shit out of it.

"Jesus Christ Ziva." I yelped as she let up a little and just smirked at me.

"I told you I hated you." She said as she took a deep breath and relaxed back into her pillow and turned to look at me.

"So that means you wanna shatter all the bones in my hand?" I asked still not letting go of her hand even though I knew another contraction would hit soon.

"You'll be lucky if that's all I break." She smiled and gave my hand a gentle squeeze.

"Hello Ziva." a doctor said with a smile as he came in and immediately walked over to where all the machines were.

"Your doctors a dude?" I whispered into her ear not even trying to hide my possessiveness.

"Yes, Tony." She laughed as another contraction hit.

"Okay Ziva." This doctor said as her contraction passed. "Your son's heart rate is still very low, I think it's time to do a C-section."

"What's wrong?" I asked confused.

"The cord's wrapped around his neck." The doctor. "I think 18 hours of labor is enough, don't you Ziva?"

"More than enough." Ziva grunted as she attempted to break my bones again.

"You've been here for 18 hours?" I asked turning back to her. "Why didn't you call me?"

"No reason we should both sit here like fruit." She smiled as she wiped hair off her damp forehead.

"Vegetables." I corrected and she squeezed my hand again. "Sorry."

"I'll go prep now, and a nurse will come with a consent form and to prep you." The doctor said with a smile and left.

I could hear my heartbeat in my ears as I stood next to Ziva's side, in these ugly scrubs, watching as the doctor started making incisions. Ziva's hand was still tight in mine as she watched me. Thankfully she'd had an epidural that had taken effect pretty quickly. As the doctor started cutting deeper I returned my attention to Ziva.

"You are not going to faint are you?" she asked as her chocolate pools bored into mine.

"No." I laughed and kissed the tip of her nose and ran my hand through her sweaty hair. "I'm not gonna faint."

"Okay, here we go." The doctor said and the anesthesiologist dropped the curtain so we could watch as our son was plucked from Ziva's womb. Sure enough the cord was wrapped around his tiny neck, but what scared me was the slight blue tint to his skin and the silence in the room. He wasn't crying.

"Tony." I heard Ziva plea as she tugged on my arm and I watched as Avery was placed in a warmer and a team of nurses and doctors swarmed around him. "Tony, why isn't he crying?" I heard her voice break.

"I don't know." I said my own voice cracking as I turned back to Ziva and pressed a kiss to her forehead. She somehow managed to wrap and arm around my neck and cried into my shoulder as I turned my head back to see the doctor with some type of mask over Avery's small face.

"Tony." She whimpered at the same time a wail erupted from Avery.

"Oh God." I sighed in relief as Avery continued to scream and Ziva cried harder.

"Just being a little dramatic." One of the nurses said as she wrapped my son up like he was some type of burrito and placed a blue cap on his head.

"Wonder where he gets that from." I whispered in Ziva's ear as the doctors continued to stitch her back up.

"You." Was her simple answer with a watery smile. I smirked and watched as the nurses re-suctioned his nose and mouth.

"Maybe." I said and placed random kisses on her cheek, nose, and forehead.

"Okay Dad, you want to hold him?" a nurse asked as she approached me with Avery still screaming in her arms.

"Yeah." I said as she handed Avery over to me and adjusted the cap on his head.

Truth is there is such thing as an ugly baby. Not my baby though. Avery was gorgeous. He had a head full of black hair, identical to Ziva's, that was hidden beneath the cap. Everything else was so tiny. Tiny nose, tiny mouth, tiny ears. His cries finally settled as I ran my finger down his cheek and murmured Italian to him. He yawned and my heart melted as I watched his tiny mouth close.

"Tony, would you like to share?" I heard Ziva ask. I looked to her with a smile as she wiped stray tears from her eyes.

"You carried him the last nine months, it's my turn." I pouted and the nurses laughed.

"DiNozzo, let me see my baby." Ziva laughed with a mock glare as I stepped closer and brought Avery close to her. She leaned up slightly and placed a kiss to his cheeks and forehead. "He's beautiful." She said as she laid back down and just gazed at him.

"He's handsome, DiNozzo men aren't beautiful, we're handsome." I laughed as she rubbed her nose against Avery's.

"No one said anything about you, Tony." She joked as we both watched the nurse take Avery to be weighed, measured, and to run more tests. Crying immediately filled the room again.

"Shush." I laughed and kissed her forehead again as I pushed her hair off her face.

"What?" she asked seriously as I gazed at her.

"You're beautiful." I said easily and left me hand on her cheek, gently running my thumb over the smooth skin. I wanted to tell her I loved her but refrained because I knew that would ruin this moment and that was the last thing I wanted to do. So for some reason I figured kissing her would be the better way to go.

"Tony?" she whispered before I softly ran my lips over hers. She immediately responded as I deepened and I slipped my hand on her cheek back into her hair. Her tongue found mine easily and battled until air became essential again. "Tony?"

"Don't." I said and pecked her lips again before glancing to her doctor who was watching us. I smirked at him and kissed Ziva quickly then tried to figure out where they took our son.

"He's in recovery, which is where we're going to take Ms. David." The doctor said with narrowed eyes.

"Once you're done of course." An older nurse smiled at me, causing both Ziva and I to blush.

We were only in recovery for an hour so before they moved us back into Ziva's room. The pediatrician assured us that Avery was fine and there was no permanent damage from his lack of breathing when he was born.

"Where is he? I want to see him." I heard Abby squeal from down the hallway. "There you are!"

"Hello Abby." Ziva laughed with a wince as she burped Avery and settled him back in her arms.

"How'd you get here so quick?" McGee asked me as he eyed me suspiciously. "And why are you in bed with Ziva?"

"We'll deal with that later." Abby said as she bounced next to Ziva's bed. "Can I hold him?"

"Of course." Ziva said as she handed Avery over to Abby.

"Oh, he's so cute!" Abby squealed startling him and he started to whimper.

"Shhh Abby, you'll make him cry." McGee said as he peered over Abby's shoulder at Avery.

"Hey Boss." I said as Gibbs entered the small room.

"Hey, how you feelin' Ziver?" he asked as he came and placed a kiss to her forehead.

"Good." She smiled and Gibbs just stared her down. "A little sore."

"Gibbs, look how cute he is." Abby said as she turned to Gibbs and adjusted Avery, who was starting to fuss in her arms.

"Check out the hair." McGee said with a smile and Abby glared at him.

"Do not make fun of him." Abby scolded and Avery started crying again. "Oh no, look what you did McGee."

"Give him to DiNozzo." Gibbs instructed Abby who looked at him confused.

"Tony?" Abby asked confused as she stepped towards me and placed Avery in my arms.

"Thanks." I smiled as I settled Avery and gently rocked him like the nurse taught me. Ziva leaned closer to me and watched as Avery's cries turned into whimpers and he was soon asleep.

"Not fair." Abby pouted and Gibbs and McGee smiled.